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Of Life and Lacquer > Summer 2015

Essie Peach Side Babe Collection Summer 2015

Posted on 27 May, 201526 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Whaaaat? Another Essie collection? Yes, there are two summer collections from Essie! Aren’t we lucky? (No, that was not sarcasm!) Coming off the ~~neons~~ brights from the previous collection, you might feel a little underwhelmed. Well, let me tell ya that while the colors may not be as bright, but they can still blow your socks off…or not. The Essie Peach Side Babe Collection for Summer 2015 is a collection of rather tame colors. I found myself not getting too excited as I sat down to swatch these, but I was pleasantly surprised by a few of the shade. Let me show you what I’m talking about.

I nearly had an aneurysm when I first laid eyes on Essie Private Weekend. In the bottle it looks like a gorgeous white with freaking sparkle. Yes, I went all googly eyed…until I put it on. Let me tell you that I didn’t find the formula that atrocious..it was no Zoya Genesis. While the first coat was super uneven, I found that three coats was enough to get it looking good. The tragic part about this polish is that the sparkle pretty much disappear on the nail. So sad.

I am really really liking Essie Chillato. What is a chillato? It sounds like clamato to me but when I wore this is reminded me of eating a huge cone of pistachio gelato as I walked the streets of Florence. The formula on this one was pretty typical of light colors like this: thin and patchy but it easily built up opacity with three coats.

Ahhh…my love of blues continue with Essie Salt Water Happy. Be warned that my camera makes this look a little more vibrant than it actually is. It’s a little less blue than what you see here, but it’s still gorgeous and it has a great formula–2 easy coats is what I am wearing above.

Look! Another beautiful blue. Essie Pret-a-Surfer should have been this collection’s namesake because it really steals the show. This one easily has the best formula of the entire collection–you could almost get away with one coat if you’re application is precise. Even better, there was no crazy staining. Score!

I don’t think peach colors look so hot on me, so Essie Peach Side Babe is definitely not one of my favorites. I lost my notes on application on this one, but I would remember if it was atrocious. I am pretty sure this was two coats.

And lastly we have Essie Sunset Sneaks. This one surprised me a bit because I am kind of an orange-red hater (omg, I remember how much i hated that color in my Crayola box!!!), but I actually really ended up liking this. The formula was ok on this one so no real problems to report.

I feel like I should like this collection more. I feel like I should go to the gym too, but that ain’t happening. I am feeling a little uninspired by this collection because the color are so mundane. Maybe I should have reviewed this before the brights, because now I’m feeling almost let down by their blandness. There are a few colors that I really love like Chillato, Pret-a-Surfer and Salt Water Happy so those would be my main recommendations. I really wish Private Weekend had fulfilled it’s delightful bottle promise, but alas, it was not meant to be. Anyway, I’m curious to hear what your take is on this collection so let me know in the comments below. Thank so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Essie Summer Neons Collection 2015

Posted on 26 May, 201526 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Neons. Neeeons. NEEEEEEONNSSSS. Did anyone say neons? If you are like me, you pretty much live for neon polishes in every shade, every finish and every brand. I know that when Essie puts out a “neon” collection, it won’t really be neon but that doesn’t dissuade me from stalking my beauty supply. I know some of you get insulted by the lack of true neon colors, but let’s just make nice with Essie and realize that their neon = bright. If they were to put out a true neon collection, they would have to call them radioactive or something like that so until that happens, let’s just work with them…mmmkkk? The Essie Summer Neons Collection for 2015 is just what I was expecting: 6 bright polishes with a somewhat tricky formula. I’ve got to admit they’re kind of gorgeous, so let me show you these beauties.

First up is Essie Coacha’bella. This one is pretty, oh so pretty but oh so forgettable. The formula isn’t horrible–you just have to apply it precisely and not overwork it. I recommend two very thin coats–with adequate dry time in between coats–and a thicker third coat to level it all out.

Next we have Essie All Access Pass. This one was the one I knew would make me age 3 years just trying to capture the color accurately. My camera is super difficult when it comes to capturing these indigo/purple colors so I pretty much gave up after a few dozen pictures. The formula on this one is incredibly thin and sheer so I figured I’d need 50 coats to make it look good. Three coats is what it took so no biggie.

When I saw Essie Vibrant Vibes, I was afraid–very afraid. This type of color is notoriously difficult to work with so I said a little prayer to La Virgen de Guadalupe before I sat down to swatch this one. Well, it seems that my prayer worked because it really wasn’t horrible. Yes, it was super streaky after the first coat, but it looked fine after the third coat. I’m not gonna complain about that because 1) I didn’t apply white undies 2) It could be much, much worse.

I love me some bright blues, so Essie Make Some Noise is right up my alley. Out of the 6 polishes, Make Some Noise has the best formula. It’s super pigmented and opaque which means that it’s out of control gorgeous and also stains like a mofo. You can see what happened after I removed this polish over on instagram in case you’re curious. It was a blue massacre. Still, it’s pretty and only needs two coats for full opacity. If you want to avoid hella staining, wear a good base coat.

Essie Groove is in the Heart is a beautiful pink with a patchtastic formula. Patchtastic /pachˈtastik/ is a word in the Cynthia Polish Lexicon in case you were wondering. Colors like this make me look extra tan so please excuse the blatant darker skin picture–it’s still my hand…not some darker random stranger. This one required 3 coats as well and to be honest, I think this one was the hardest for me to work with. Still, it’s pink and pink is my color even when it’s baby pink so I’ll let it slide.

And lastly we have Essie Melody Maker. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. The formula on this one is really good, even for Essie. It’s the second two coater from this collection, but I didn’t get staining from this one like I did with Make Some Noise. Lesley and I were remarking that we probably have dupes for this one but we don’t care because we can NEVER get enough of these types of colors. The first couple of colors that came to mind are OCC Chlorophyl…

Sorry, I couldn’t help it. So, I was saying: OCC Chlorophyl and YSL Vert d’Orient are two polishes that are possible dupes. Do I care? Nope. It’s a sickness, I tell ya.

So what do you think about this collection? Personally I like it, I like it a lot. I’m happy that they do not require a white base because ain’t nobody got time for that. I know that the major complaint will be that these are not neon, so let’s just get that out of the way right now. The only neon in this whole collection is probably Vibrant Vibes and even that one didn’t require a white base. Despite the atrocious staining, I think Make Some Noise is my favorite one from the collection with Melody Maker coming in at a close second. I’ve heard that this collection is exclusive to Target (Essie’s post on IG), but that’s kinda weird, no? I got my set at an independent beauty supply so there’s that. I do wonder what the general reaction will be to this collection so please share your thoughts below. I hope you’re doing well today, and thanks a bunch for stopping by today. Talk to you soon!

Zoya Paradise Sun Collection Summer 2015

Posted on 25 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Hi everybody. I hope that you’re taking some time to think about all of the men and women who have bravely served this country. It doesn’t matter what your politics are, our men and women in the military deserve our respect and gratitude and today is a day to remember their sacrifices. I’m spending my day at home babysitting the Peanut Brat and we’ve just had a grand old time. Currently he’s taking a nap so I’m taking advantage of the free time to write up this post. Today I’m posting the second half of Zoya’s Summer Collection. I’ve already posted the Island Fun Collection which is the creme half of the Summer collection. The Zoya Paradise Sun Collection is about metallic shimmer which isn’t really my favorite finish, but Zoya always manages to really pull off this finish. On to the swatches!

Zoya Selene

Zoya Isa

Zoya Genesis

Zoya Oceane

Zoya Mae

Zoya Aphrodite

These polishes are SUPER shimmery which made them a nightmare to swatch. I had shimmer all over my fingers and had to use a scrub in between each polish. These are all really nice polishes if you like metallic shimmer, but Genesis was a horrible pain in the ass. It took like 4-5 coats to even it out and I would curse it to hell if it wasn’t so pretty. I love white polish so much and this one is so gorgeous and shimmery. My least favorite polish here is Aphrodite because it’s a jelly that still shows VNL despite 4 coats. I am satisfied with these, but I’m not as enthusiastic because this is not my favorite finish. So what do you think about this half of the collection? Do you prefer the cremes or the metallics? Let me know! Thanks for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon.

Zoya Island Fun Collection Summer 2015

Posted on 24 May, 2015 by Cynthia

Hey you. Are you enjoying your weekend so far? I basically have not left the house since Friday, and I’m enjoying it more than I should. There are tons of things that I could be doing, but here I am in my sweats watching movies and swatching tons of polishes. Have you been doing anything fun this weekend? I’m currently watching the movie Chef (for the 3rd time), and now I want a crazy delicious grilled cheese. Anyway, today I’m going to show you my swatches of the Zoya Island Fun Collection which is the creme half of their Summer Collection. If you read my blog regularly, you know creme polish is life to me so I’m always excited to try these out first. Let me show you my swatches, and then I’ll let you know what I think.

Zoya Jace

Zoya Nana

Zoya Serenity

Zoya Cecilia

Zoya Talia

Zoya Demetria

Well, you know I’m gonna say it: these are all gorgeous cremes. Lately I have been super obsessed with green nail polish so I was super excited about Jace, but it was super thin. I like the color, but it took 3 coats to get the color opaque. All of the other colors were opaque with 2 coats, which is typical with the Zoya creme formula. I had minor staining with Cecilia and Talia, but I’m sure that with a good base coat, you shouldn’t have too many problems. Overall, the colors are really nice and very Summer appropriate but they’re staples that you probably have dupes for already. If you don’t have something similar, then I can definitely recommend these. What do you think of these shades? Are there any that you are planning to pick up or have purchased already? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

China Glaze Desert Escape Collection Summer 2015

Posted on 19 May, 201518 May, 2015 by Cynthia

So how was your Monday? My day was so busy that it just zipped by and poof it’s Tuesday. I guess that’s good, but it’s scary how fast time flies. I’m looking forward to a 3 day weekend so I’m excited about that so I hope this week goes by quickly and I can get to my 3 days of utter laziness. Yasss! I got a bunch of swatching done this past weekend so I do have a lot of new stuff to share with you. On Friday I got a nifty package from my friends at China Glaze…nifty? Am I back in the 50’s or what? Anyway, you know that I am always excited when new China Glaze collections come out and this is no exception. At first glance I thought the color palette looked a little disjointed, but once I got to see them in person they just worked. How did it work? I don’t know…it’s a mystery!

Ha! I remember how much I loved that movie when it first came out. Yeah, it’s a little pseudo-intellectual but it was really good! Plus, it came out during a time when my life goal was to become a Shakespearean scholar. Who would have thought that instead I’d decide to wax poetic about nail polish? Oh how low I have fallen! Still, nail polish has its merits, am I right or am I right? Back to the polish. The collection I have for you today is the China Glaze Desert Escape Collection for Summer 2015 so I hope you like my swatches (and commentary) below.

China Glaze Don’t Mesa With My Heart

I love pink and that is no secret. I do think that it my signature color despite of years of black rebellion where I refused to wear pink because it was too girly. I love this pink because it’s bright but no too bubblegum. The formula was nice–not streaky and very easy to control. I applied two coats here and a coat of Seche for added shine.

China Glaze What’s She Dune?

Lately I have totally been into putty colors so I can tell you that this is one of my favorite nudes of recent times. It’s not overly brown and it’s not yellow-based–it’s kind of perfect for my skin tone. I feared that this would be a nightmare shade but it was actually pretty nice. I applied three thin coats but I think two regular coats would have been enough to get a smooth finish.

China Glaze Rain Dance the Night Away

I absolutely love this color! My camera totally makes it look more blue than it is–it has more green in it in real life and it is goygeous. The formula was perfection so no complaints here. I just wish my camera would capture this type of colors accurately.

China Glaze Don’t Desert Me

Even though this is technically pink, or raspberry pink, I am not a big fan of this one because it’s kind of frosty-looking. I guess it’s a shimmer but I dunno–it’s just not my cup of tea. The formula seemed a little thin, but it actually built up nicely with two coats.

China Glaze Meet Me at the Mirage

This one right here was the big surprise for me. When I firs saw it I told myself I’d hate it…and then I put it on. It’s like this fantastically smooth metallic marvel! It’s practically a one-coater. I actually ended up really liking this one on me. I so love when I get proved wrong when it comes to nail polish.

China Glaze The Heat is On

This one is probably my least favorite polish in the collection. There’s nothing wrong with it–I just don’t like orange-red polishes too much. It’s a jelly finish polish so it has that really great squishy look to it, but you will need 3 coats to make it fully opaque–and even then you might get a little VNL. It’s nice, but not super exciting.

Overall, I am really pleased by the variety in this collection. The formula was good on all of them which you know will always be my #1 gripe regardless of brand because who has time to deal with bad formulation? While the colors aren’t revolutionary, they are pretty and good staple colors. If you are polish ~~hoarder~~ collector, you also won’t be disappointed. Now for the important deets: the Desert Escape Collection is set for a June 1st release and can be found at a new online retailer for China Glaze: lockandmane.com Sally Beauty Supply will carry limited kits but will not be carrying the individual shades. I was also informed that Ulta will not be carrying this collection so the main place to pick up individual shades will be lockandmane.com I’m not sure if this is they case because this is a specialty collection or whatnot, but I’ll let you know if I hear more. So what do you think about this collection? Do you see any shades that you’re going to pick up? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!

KBShimmer Summer Collection 2015

Posted on 18 May, 201518 May, 2015 by Cynthia

I keep hearing that it’s super hot in other parts of the country, but here in Southern California we are getting some much needed rain. Today has been a clear day, but I hope that we get some more rain. I had planned to put up my swatches of this collection like a month ago but my hiatus kind of derailed my plans. Since this collection is brand new and just became available on 5/15, what better time to start wearing bright Summer colors and show you my favorites? The KBShimmer Summer Collection for 2015 is absolutely massive with neon cremes, glitters, foil flakes and duochrome flakes–there truly is something for everyone in this collection. Let me show you the 9 polishes I picked out to for you today:

KBShimmer For Sail By Owner

KBShimmer In Yacht Water

KBShimmer Sarong Place, Sarong Time

KBShimmer We Be Jammin’

KBShimmer What Are You Wading For?

KBShimmer Vitamin Sea

KBShimmer She’s Beyond Kelp!

KBShimmer Green Weaver

KBShimmer Look On The Nightside

The neon cremes are so gorgeous, but they aren’t super easy to work with. Since they dry satin, they have a tendency to dry quickly so it is very easy to overwork them. As long as you’re aware of this, you shouldn’t have too much trouble with them–they’re very pigmented and gorgeous. I really was not expecting to love the duochrome flakies but holy crap they are really beautiful. I don’t have any of the flakies from other brands so I can’t do a comparison for you, but these offer really great coverage and are opaque at two coats. I had a hard time capturing the color shift so I took a few extra pictures in a different setting. Who knew my bathroom would have good lighting to show off the duochrome effect?! Overall, this collection does not disappoint! I love the variety of colors and finishes, and I know that you are bound to find something to love in this collection. In case you weren’t already aware, this collection is available now at kbshimmer.com so get them while they’re hot! Do you have any favorites? I hope that you’re having a good weekend and thanks so much for stopping by today. I will talk to you soon!

China Glaze Electric Nights Collection Summer 2015

Posted on 1 April, 201531 March, 2015 by Cynthia

Hey guys! Happy April and happy April Fool’s Day! I don’t have any pranks for you today so don’t worry. I did think about doing one prank, but I thought it might be offensive so I decided not to do it. Are we getting too PC nowadays? It seems like it because I constantly find myself questioning if things I’m about to write could potentially offend someone. It’s not like I’m Ann Coulter or anything, but some people are really serious about this nail business! Well, today I have a new collection to share with you that we will all probably agree is fan-freaking-tastic. As you know, I get really excited when Summer collections start coming out so I was pretty much spazing out when I saw pictures of the China Glaze Electric Nights Collection for Summer 2015. As excited as I was, I was also really apprehensive because I know that neon collections an be really hard to pull off, and I always end up disappointed with the formula of the polishes. Well, let me show you the polishes before I let you know what I thought of them.

China Glaze Treble Maker

China Glaze DJ Blue My Mind

China Glaze UV Meant to Be

China Glaze Glow with the Flow

China Glaze Violet-Vibes

China Glaze Plur-ple

China Glaze Red-y to Rave

China Glaze Home Sweet House Music

China Glaze Daisy Know My Name?

Let me talk about the neon cremes before we get into the glitters…they are gorgeous. If you were expecting horrible formulas, then you will be pleasantly surprised because these are not problematic. They do not dry too quickly and do not dry satin/matte. They’re not perfect like some cremes because they do require a little more care when it comes to application, but since they are so gorgeous–do you really care? The key for me was to let the polish dry a little longer in between coats. If you do that, you can get away with two coats for most of these polishes. Daisy Know My Name? is the only one that gave me some trouble but that’s to be expected with yellows in general and this one is extra bright and somewhat sheer so I applied 4 thin coats. I would also like to mention that I did NOT wear a white base under these because I don’t think that they really need them. Yes, they are technically neons–some more than others–but they can also be called very bright cremes. In any case, I love them…I love them so hard.

China Glaze Point Me to the Party

China Glaze Let the Beat Drop

China Glaze Can I Get An Untz Untz

I know everyone has been going crazy over these glitters, and I can totally see why. They have an indie vibe to them and they are super pretty. I decided to swatch them over white because I wanted to show you all the different colors within each bottle. While it’s not difficult to get a decent amount of glitter on your brush, it is easy to flood your nails with the clear base. I recommend doing the dabbing method to avoid pooling of clear base at your cuticles. I think this glitters will look fabulous over black and over the saturated solid color polishes in this collection so I can’t wait to experiment.

Overall, China Glaze hit it out of the park with this collection. I love the colors, I liked the formula and I just think the feeling and vibe of this collection is fun and full of energy. I did not have any significant staining to report except for some minor staining from the two blues, but I was only swatching them and did not wear any base coat. The China Glaze Electric Night Collection officially comes out today but they’ve been available online at various etailers for a while now so you should be able to pick them up easily. Now I leave it to you: what do you think about this collection? I am really looking forward to hearing what you think so leave a comment below letting me know if you’re planning to pick any of these up and which are your favorites. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I will talk to you soon!